1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to a retaining mechanism for an outboard cowl and, more particularly, to an inertial lock which is actuated in response to a sudden impact on the outboard motor and which inhibits the cowl latch from releasing the cowl from its attached position.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many different types of cowl latching systems are known to those skilled in the art. The basic function of these cowl latching systems and devices is to retain a removable portion of the cowl in an attached position during operation of the outboard motor.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,883, which issued to Slattery on Oct. 24, 1989, discloses a latch assembly for releasably securing cowl sections of an outboard motor. A cowl assembly includes an upper cowl section and a lower cowl section. A latch assembly incorporates a pivotable hook connected to one of the cowl sections, which is engageable with a hook engaging member provided on a catch mechanism connected to the other cowl section. Due to the presence of a compressible seal between the upper and lower cowl sections, relative vertical movement is possible therebetween, and thereby between the hook and the hook engaging member. The improved latch mechanism incorporates a retainer mechanism for preventing disengagement of the hook from the catch mechanism during such relative vertical movement of the cowl sections, for ensuring that the cowl sections remain secured together during compression of the compressible seal between the cowl sections.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,194, which issued to Wagner on May 22, 1990, describes an interlock latch assembly for releasably securing cowl sections of an outboard motor. The interlock mechanism is provided for a latch assembly which releasably secures upper and lower cowl sections of an outboard motor. The interlock mechanism is movable between a locking position and a release position and is normally disposed in its locking position, such as by a coil spring. The interlock mechanism is mounted to the latch handle which is pivotably mounted to one of the cowl sections. A hook is interconnected with the latch handle and is engageable with a catch assembly provided on the other of the cowl sections. The interlock assembly normally engages a stationary engagement pin provided on one of the cowl sections which prevents accidental pivoting movement of the latch handle. The interlock mechanism is manually movable to its release position so that the latch handle can be pivoted so as to disengage the hook from the catch mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,669,517, which issued to Alby et al. on Dec. 30, 2003, discloses a multiple part cowl structure for an outboard motor. The structure comprises first and second cowl members which are independent components. A first cowl member is attachable, by a latch mechanism, to a support structure of the outboard motor. The second cowl member is attachable by a latch mechanism, to both the first cowl member and the support structure. The first cowl member extends across a rear portion of the outboard motor and at least partially along both port and starboard sides of the outboard motor. The second cowl member extends across a front portion of the outboard motor and at least partially along the port and starboard sides of the outboard motor. In preferred embodiment, the second cowl member also extends partially over a top portion of the outboard motor and over a rear portion of the outboard motor.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,682,379, which issued to Walczak et al. on Jan. 27, 2004, discloses a cowl latching system which simplifies the cowl removing process. The system provides a retainer that is attached to the outboard motor and a catch device which is attached to a cowl structure. The catch device is shaped to allow the retainer to move between first and second extension portions. The retainer is provided with first and second retention members that can each move from a retracted position to an extended position under the urging of a resilient member such as a spring. The first and second retention members can also be urged from their respective extended positions to their respective retracted positions by the movement of the first and second extension portions of the catch device when the cowl structure is installed onto the outboard motor. The arrangement of the catch device and retainer simplifies the installation and removal of the cowl structure from the outboard motor by allowing the operator of a marine vessel to more easily and simply move the cowl structure relative to the stationary components of the outboard motor during both the installation and removal procedures.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/070,760, which was filed by Gulko et al. on Mar. 2, 2005, discloses a cowl latching mechanism for an outboard motor. The cowl latching system is provided which facilitates the installation of a removable cowl with respect to a stationary cowl structure and allows these two components to be locked together as a result of a simple downward movement in a vertical direction of the removable cowl with respect to the stationary structure. Removal of the removable cowl is also facilitated by allowing these components to be disengaged from each other as a result of a rotation of the removable cowl relative to the stationary cowl structure after a manually operable latch is released.
The patents described above are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in the description of the present invention.
It would be significantly beneficial if a system could be provided which inhibits the inadvertent separation of cowl latch components when the outboard motor is subjected to an impact force.